Engaging students online (2)

The second episode of the “Engaging Students Online” series explores how to assign students the task of revisiting content from the previous class.

Introduction

Teachers often believe that it’s easier to engage with students in a face-to-face course than in an online setting. Is this true? In this series I propose small pedagogical concepts for students’ engagement during an online teaching class. I believe these concepts can also easily be adapted for face-to-face classes.

Instructional Method

Teachers understand the value of revisiting content from the previous class. To foster active learning, give students more responsibility in this process. (Funny, that the aspect of giving responsibility to students comes up again — it was already useful in the first episode).

Students create a quiz to review key aspects of the previous class

When applying this method for the first time, explain to the students that you’d like them to create a quiz for the next class based on today’s class content. Ask for volunteers and aim to form a group of about 3-5 students.

Encourage these 3-5 students to stay attentive and take notes on the content of the class. You can joke that of course all students should stay attentive. After class, the student group should create a short 5-10 minute quiz to review the key points. This quiz will be used at the start of the next session. Students are responsible for finding a suitable platform to implement the quiz questions.

This approach not only reinforces learning but also promotes accountability and engagement with the material.

Rules for us teachers

• When introducing this concept for the first time, it’s important to take some time to explain it to the students and discuss their thoughts and feedback.
• Teachers should remain relaxed if some of the quiz questions turn out to be very easy.
• After the quiz, teachers can provide feedback on the questions and perhaps offer additional insights or information.
• In any case, it’s essential to acknowledge and appreciate the effort of the student group. However, I would recommend not grading the quiz directly—consider awarding bonus points instead.

Framework

• This approach is useful in all online courses with discursive elements
• If you have any questions, ask Jutta Pauschenwein
• Plattform: MS Teams, other video conference tools

Further information

Another option for reviewing content from the previous class is through a student role-play activity. For more details, see Reviewing Material Through Role-Play (in German)